What breaks most · 1991 to 2003 model years
Saturn Saturn problems by year
Owners have filed 211 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Saturn Saturn across model years 1991 to 2003. Three years stand out: 1994 for seats complaints, 1995 for electrical system complaints and 1996 for powertrain and transmission complaints. The quietest years are 1991, 1999 and 2001.
- Years to check closely: 1994, 1995, 1996
- Fewest complaints: 1991, 1999, 2001
- Complaints on file
- 2111991 to 2003, all trims
- Worst year
- 199433 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 273 fires · 36 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 54kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 3Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0 | 0 | Seat belts (1) | |
| 17 | 2 | 0 | Seats (4) | |
| 19 | 3 | 1 | Seats (4) | |
| 33 | 7 | 0 | Seats (9) | |
| 26 | 4 | 0 | Electrical system (5) | |
| 26 | 2 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (4) | |
| 26 | 2 | 1 | Electrical system (9) | |
| 13 | 2 | 0 | Engine and cooling (3) | |
| 8 | 1 | 0 | Brakes (hydraulic) (2) | |
| 14 | 0 | 0 | Tires (3) | |
| 8 | 2 | 0 | Unknown or other (2) | |
| 10 | 1 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (4) | |
| 10 | 1 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (5) |
What fails on the 1994 Saturn Saturn
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seats | 27% |
9 | 4 | — |
| Seat belts | 21% |
7 | 0 | Check recalls for seat belts on NHTSA.gov |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 18% |
6 | 0 | Shop all brakes (hydraulic) parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Air bags | 15% |
5 | 4 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| VisibilityMirrors and glass | 9% |
3 | 0 | Shop all visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 9% |
3 | 0 | Shop all engine and cooling parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 6% |
2 | 0 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 6% |
2 | 0 | Shop all electrical system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Chemical on air filter leaves gum deposits on valves, resulting in vehicle shuddering/hesitating between speeds of 30 mph and 60 mph, also looses acceleration.
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Ltr fwd email fm eric solis (tx) concerned that his 1995 saturn was not included in general motors (GM) recent recall of 1.4 million vehicles for a faulty ignition switch which can cause a fire.*mr the consumer stated his vehicle experienced the same problem. *jb *ph
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Brake rotors: brakes pulsating and grabbing. At 6000 miles had to have new rotors and again at 18000 miles. Dealer said the brakes were not covered under warranty. Consumer feels rotors should not wear this quickly and considers this a safety problem. *ak
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Saturn Saturn years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 1994, 1995, 1996 carry the most filings on the Saturn Saturn. The 1994 alone has 33 complaints, led by seats.
What is the most common Saturn Saturn problem?
On the 1994 model year, the most-reported component is seats with 9 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Saturn Saturn problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Saturn Saturn complaints that include mileage is about 54,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.